– Spoiler Review –
Revelations abound on what’s really happening in The High Republic – Phase II’s part of the Battle of Jedha, though issue #7’s cliffhanger ending lacks some bite.
It’s been a little weird reading this series alongside the rest of Phase II, which overall feels less connected than Phase I was, as the events of The Battle of Jedha seem inconsequential to the events happening here, and vice versa. You could read one or the other and have little to no idea what’s transpired in the other which, while it keeps reveals or surprises from being spoiled, makes it hard to reconcile they are both happening at the same time and place. It’s only really in this issue’s opening crawl we get a hint here of the bigger battle sparked by the peace treaty talks between Eiram and E’ronoh, and while both stories share the scene of the Herald inciting a riot, the audiodrama makes it seem like a small incident while this shows it’s a much bigger event.
Regardless, issue #7 provides cohesiveness and answers for its own story, making my above-mentioned concerns less of a problem. Tey, Matty, and Vildar all help one another reach the conclusion the Herald incited the riot to give the mercenaries, who Tey fought back when they recently invaded the Temple of Kyber, a distraction to raid the city in search for the Rod of Daybreak, a mysterious item we only know from other sources is key to controlling the Nameless creatures the Path of the Open Hand plans to use against the Jedi (and the Nihil will use later in the era). And while the characters don’t all put it together, especially due to the cliffhanger ending, it seems clear the felling of the Jedi protector statue wasn’t to send a message, but rather to explore it to find the hidden chambers where the Rod’s being kept! It answers a bigger question I had for two issues, how Jedi Knight Oliviah Zeveron’s Master Leebon knew the group would be out there before anyone else: because she knew about the secret vault there with the Rod in it, as well as question from the events of Path of Deceit, where the Rod of Seasons went missing, as the Jedi moved the Daybreak rod but we didn’t quite know where until now. I’m curious if there’s anyone still in the Order who knows why someone would want the item, of what it can do, or if Matty’s comment on such knowledge lost to the ages is simply the truth (which can happen purposefully at times, as we see in the recent Phase II release, Cataclysm). I’m glad we got some focus on what’s all happening here, even if it’s with only three issues left, as it puts what’s come before into perspective and gives us a goal of the final few issues besides protect the innocent of Jedha.
But protecting all the innocents isn’t what Vildar wants to do, instead he’s narrowed in on the band he’s already rescued, taking them to Kradon’s Enlightenment bar for refuge. Kradon is reluctant at first, but Vildar, Tey, and Matty make sure he doesn’t have much of a choice, so they all pack in while the Twinkle Sisters do what they do best and keep the doors from being breached by the mob outside. The front door might be covered but a secret entrance or exit, depending on who you ask, gains a lovely new hole in the wall as Representative Tarna is being chased by the wardroids rampaging throughout the city. They hold off the droids long enough for Kradon to decide to activate the bar’s shield, preventing any further incursions. Tey, as we’ve seen in the flashback and last issue in how he convinces the Guardians to go out and help the city, doesn’t want to remain holed up in the bar, eager to get back out there and help the city. Vildar is the opposite, which comes as a surprise to Tey, but it leads to him explaining the hold his past has over him. Throughout the series we’ve seen Vildar’s dark past, where a Sorcerer of Tund came and decimated his village, and only last issue did we learn a Jedi Master came and saved the day, bringing little Vildar to the Order. Tarna knows of Vildar’s story because every Sorcerer knows the story, the rogue, fallen member who brought shame to their name. And while it seems like Vildar has only learned prejudices and judging people too quickly from the event, rather he’s scared of it because he’s seen what happens when someone with abilities like theirs cross the line: innocents get hurt. Vildar came to Jedha so he could, as Matty puts it, “plays by the rules,” instead of being at the Togrutan front, so going out into the fracas on the streets could pull him too far in one direction and push him over the line he’s trying to avoid. So being here, inside Enlightenment, allows him to stay small and focused, to have a line clearly there he knows not to cross, almost literally via the doors of the bar. But what he learns next might be what forces him out of the confines of the bar to place were lines aren’t so easy to see…
For once, the series’ cliffhanger doesn’t hinge on Vildar’s life on the line, but someone else’s entirely. We unfortunately don’t get to see how things go down out by the statue when Leebon and Oliviah are attacked by the mercenaries, but when she calls Vildar, it’s clear things didn’t go well and maybe a Nameless was involved too, as Leebon has been taken and Oliviah can’t concentrate enough to use the Force, losing her lightsaber and allowing fear to creep in. While she’s on the line with Vildar, the mercenary leader sneaks up behind her and puts her lightsaber through her gut! Vildar being in the focus throughout the series has made his life hanging in the balance for cliffhangers hit harder, though it diminished how often it was happening, but the lack of time with Oliviah takes some bite out of the moment. If she dies from this, as far as what we know about her officially, I wouldn’t feel much sadness over it, as Jedi dying during this era isn’t anything new, but something that can happen to anyone at anytime. However, outside of spending more time with Oliviah, having clear confirmation of her relationship to the Mother, aka Elicia Zeveron, leader of the Path of the Open Hand, or how Elicia feels about Oliviah and her being with the Jedi, like if this is the reason she’s so dead-set on destroying them she used the Path of the Open Hand’s beliefs and twisted them to serve her needs, would raise the stakes of the moment. I believe we’ll finally get these details in Cavan Scott’s Phase II closer Path of Vengeance, and it’ll certainly reframe a lot of this Phase, but I’m curious how effective it’ll be or if more information like it upfront would’ve helped instead. Regardless, I hope Oliviah isn’t dead, and someone can make it out there to save her, so I’m curious to see what happens next.
On art this issue was both Andrea Broccardo returning to the series but also Marika Cresta joining, whose name was delightful to see since she helped kick off Alyssa Wong’s tenure on the Doctor Aphra series back in 2020! They work alongside the return of inker Mark Morales, colorist Frank William, and lastly Ariana Maher lettering. One of my favorite panels from Broccardo’s section, the opening half of the issue, is the double page panel of Vildar tearing down a wall to protect them from the mob and give them time to escape. The shear amount of bricks and dust which come crumbling down makes it an impressive display of using the Force, much like him holding up all the debris last issue, and knowing it all comes from him reaching into a small crack created in the fighting gives me “shatterpoint” ability-vibes. Matty’s shock certainly helps sell the moment too, but it’s one of the Twinkle Sister’s being frozen in awe, themselves big and imposing, which makes it all the more impressive, while William’s colors, the dust sort of muting the clothes of those being stopped by the wall while our heroes remain bright, basking in the light of their sabers, gives the scene a heroic composure. It’s Maher’s SFX which finalizes the show of might, the “kroosh” has a stony look to it, with little fractures at the bottom of the letters, making it feel like he shattered them too when he tore it down. I also quite liked the sense of scale in the shot of the statue from the sky, Leebon and Oliviah little blimps against its almost immeasurable size, William’s colors displaying how it’s already sort of become one with the planet’s desert, maybe a sly way of saying it’s one with the Force, as the Force is in all things. On Cresta’s half of the issue, there’s tons of moments necessary for great facial work and she delivers often, starting with one of her first panels and Tey’s utter shock over Vildar’s plan to stay in the bar, hands up almost in fright like, how could he even imagine such an idea, eyes wide, William providing some shocking yellows to aid the look, while Maher’s word bubble stays at the edges, making it so you almost don’t need to read what’s in them because the face about says it all. Vildar’s look through most of the scene in the bar as Tey confronts him and they unpack his past, almost demure as the insinuations from Tey come in, building to resolve in his choice as they talk through why he was coming to Jedha for peace and inaction for a bit, to help himself again deal with what he saw as a child. His face in the final panel, shouting Oliviah’s name, felt right out of some anime and I loved it, his face crinkled and mouth wide, Maher’s lettering for his shout matching the art’s intensity and ending the issue on a shrill ringing note.
Here are a few other things:
- Phase II won’t be all wrapping up in May, as some of The High Republic Adventures – Phase II slips into June, but this is the last issue of the series (though not the final) prior to the panel at Celebration Europe (April 8 at 7am CST)! While I won’t be going this year, make sure to swing by the Manor for whatever updates come through, as they’ll be talking Phase II and dropping teases for Phase III!
- With Young Jedi Adventures premiering on May 4, it dropped some shorts ahead of time to give us the first glimpse of the High Republic era on screen! On top of the show, the first merchandise has dropped, meaning Vector toys, LEGOs, and a whole lot of the show’s adorable Nubs! Hopefully the main THR content gets some merch soon, like action figures for notable Jedi, the Nihil, and more!!
The High Republic #7 – Phase II brings us focus and new details to help present the path going forward into the final three issues.
+ Bringing it all together
+ Unpacking Vildar’s past
– Cliffhanger shows how little we know
Ryan is Mynock Manor’s Head Butler. You can follow him on Twitter @BrushYourTeeth. You can follow the website on Twitter @MynockManor and Instagram @mynockmanor.
THE HIGH REPUBLIC – PHASE II REVIEWS
Balance of the Force: #1 | #2 | #3 | #4 | #5 — Battle of the Force: #6